Most graduation ceremonies take place in late spring at the end of the school year. However, dozens of adult learners in the Cleveland area were honored with their own unique graduation ceremony in June through the May Dugan Center in Cleveland.
As 24-year-old Zulmarie Muniz proceeded into the ceremony at Urban Community School on Cleveland’s West Side, she looked the picture of a graduate in a white dress, red heels and black cap. She’d just earned her GED diploma through the help of the May Dugan social services agency, and many of her family members were there to help her celebrate.
“I didn’t get to go to my own high school's graduation, so I had to kind of go all out for my own,” she said, beaming.
Muniz is one of about 65 adults who were honored at the graduation ceremony late last month, hosted by the May Dugan Center, which has several education programs focused on adult students.
Muniz was a teenage mother – her son is currently seven – and she had to drop out of high school to care for him. It’s been a long journey to get here, she said, juggling responsibilities while attending classes at the Center.
“I would have to wake up, go to work, walk my son to his sitter, then walk to school and, you know, do whatever it took; I was willing to make those sacrifices, just to show my son, to be the role model,” she said. “If I want him to achieve his goals, I have to achieve mine first.”
Sarah Edelman, director of education at May Dugan, said they host the graduation ceremony each year to celebrate people, like Muniz, who have made progress in the Center’s various adult education programs, whatever that success may look like.
On top of its GED prep program (a GED diploma is the equivalent of a high-school degree), the May Dugan Center also has programs for workforce development – which provides job training and help finding jobs – and a program to help immigrants and refugees learn English.
“One thing we recognized with adults is it takes a lot of time to achieve their goals, to get the GED or to go through the workforce training, to explore their careers,” Edelman said, noting many are juggling raising children and work.
Editor’s note: Sarah Edelman is married to Michael Edelman, Ideastream Public Media’s director of education, but he is not an editorial team member.
Edelman says May Dugan’s services are free, available to anyone in Northeast Ohio, and have a lower barrier than some other adult education programs – they don’t require adults to read above a fourth-grade reading level.
That’s important because roughly 66% of Cleveland’s population is considered functionally illiterate, according to the Cleveland nonprofit Seeds of Literacy. That refers to people with math, reading, or language skills below a 4th grade level. The organization says adults at that level of education earn 42% less than those with a diploma.
The state of GED programs in Cuyahoga County
Seeds of Literacy hosted its own graduation ceremony last month too, where it honored its largest graduating class yet of 150 adults who had received their GED diplomas after attending free classes through the nonprofit.
Spokesperson Katie Kucera said that more than 90,000 adults in Cuyahoga County do not have a high-school diploma or an equivalent degree. Kucera said, by Seeds of Literacy's estimate, there are only four agencies that offer GED programming in Northeast Ohio, including Seeds of Literacy and the May Dugan Center.
Carmine Stewart, vice president of programming for Seeds of Literacy, said they have seen a steady return of students to its classes since the pandemic hit in 2020.
“Before the pandemic, we served roughly 1,000 students annually – all in person,” Stewart said. “As we had to pivot to virtual, we were really concerned about keeping local students engaged as they had been previously reluctant to engage in digital literacy. Students were willing to give virtual learning a chance when the lockdown removed all other choices.”
Seeds of Literacy’s virtual classroom has grown steadily since, and its in-person classes have returned to pre-pandemic numbers.
“…we believe that people are finding a sense of normalcy focusing on what they want for their lives, and seeing education as the pathway to reach those goals,” Stewart said.
May Dugan is also almost back to its pre-pandemic levels of attendance, similarly offering in-person and virtual options, Edelman said.
New opportunities arise from programming
Tonjunia Locklear and her daughter Tatiana McFarland were honored during the ceremony at the May Dugan Center. Locklear, a mother of eight, is close to getting her GED diploma. She said the math section of the test had tripped her up, but only momentarily.
“I’m going to school to be a social worker when I get it,” she said. “ I'm ready to go back to class, so I'll get the math done.”
Meanwhile, McFarland got her GED diploma and is on her way to nursing school, getting help applying for financial aid through the center as well.
“Previously, I was a caregiver, so I just like taking care of people and helping people,” she said. That's just my passion.”
Those celebrated during the graduation ceremony ranged in age from late teens to people in their 80s, and included a diverse array of Black, white, Latino and immigrant participants. Edelman says many friendships have bloomed that might not have otherwise; program participants give each other rides and offer support when times might get tough, for example.
Magdalena Cid, a 78-year-old Cleveland resident from Chile, is in her second year in the English language-learner program. She had a short speech prepared with a message of gratitude.
“They (teachers) help me to understand more English every day,” she said. “I also want to thank my fellow student for helping me too.”
Cid says she’s spent years working to put food on her family’s table in this country, and now finally has time to work on her goal of English fluency, which the May Dugan Center has helped tremendously with, she added.
Alphonsine Camara was the ceremonial speaker. Her family immigrated from Guinea four years ago. In the time since, she said she’s persevered through hardship, including the pandemic and losing her father. At the same time, she’s learned English at the May Dugan Center and, most recently, graduated from high school at St. Joseph Academy in Rocky River.
“We come from different backgrounds, cultures and experiences, but we all share a common goal to make the world a better place,” she told the graduation ceremony participants.
Camara is now heading to Bowling Green State University where she’ll pursue a degree in nursing; her father also worked in the medical field.
Members of the Center’s Seniors on the Move program – some of whom were being honored themselves – sang for the graduation ceremony participants. Their song choices – including “Lean on Me” and “Don’t Stop Believin’” - emphasized the core values of the program: that the students can rely on others and that they can achieve their dreams despite hardship.
For Zulmarie Muniz, the 24-year-old who received her GED, the May Dugan Center has opened windows of opportunity. She says she wants to get her real estate license and also go to cosmetology school.
She had her own advice for other adults who might not have their high school diploma.
“Don't be afraid to look out for those resources that are out there,” she said. “There's a lot of help out there for you. And don't feel ashamed to go out there and get a GED; I know it's not high school, but you’re still doing it and you're never too late, no matter how long it takes.
“Go for it,” she urged.
